Infighting has returned to Greece’s coalition government, just as the country is under immense pressure to convince its debtors it deserves an extra two years to hit deficit reduction targets.

A meeting between Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras and his two coalition partners on Thursday was expected to fail to reach agreement on necessary budget cuts with a further meeting now scheduled for Sunday.

Ahead of Thursday’s meeting, a spokesperson for Pasok, the centre-left party and coalition member, attacked Mr Samaras’s New Democracy party, saying the Prime Minister ought to have found the budget cuts within the €12 billion of savings he claimed to have identified during this year’s election campaign.

In response, a spokesman for New Democracy told Ekathimerini newspaper: “In these difficult times, everybody has to show responsibility and pay attention to every word."

The fighting comes as public transport unions went on strike on Thursday while a nationwide protest against further cuts to wages and pensions has been announced by unions for September 26.

Greece needs to find a further €11.5 billion in spending cuts in order to pass an upcoming report being prepared by the so-called troika – the European Commission, European Central Bank and International Monetary Fund – into its progress in meeting the terms of its bailout. A positive report is critical to the country receiving its next tranche of bailout funds, some €31 billion, which will be needed before the end of this year.

A tick of approval from the troika is also going to determine whether Greece is given its request for an extra two years to cut its deficit. Greek officials have talked of the need for some “easy wins" to help convince its European partners that it deserves more time.

Such easy wins could include the sale of office buildings and consular residences in London and Brussels as well as a palace that once belonged to Greece’s royal family that includes 40 outbuildings, stables and graves of several royal family members. British papers on Wednesday reported the planned sale, part of a €40 billion privatisation programme promised by Athens which is yet to get off the ground.

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But reaching agreement on the €11.5 billion in savings will be of far more importance than offshore asset sales to Greece’s efforts to stay in the euro as the new coalition government will be tested on its ability to push through controversial reforms such as public service cuts.

Of the €11.5 billion, €9.5 billion of cuts have been approved by the troika, narrowing the gap on reforms which are yet to be approved by Greece’s lenders as lacking detail. Both Pasok and Democratic Left, the two junior coalition partners, are opposed to axing further public servants despite Greece already promising to have 150,000 less public servants by 2015 compared to 2010.

During this year’s election campaign Mr Samaras promised to make €12 billion of spending cuts by eliminating waste in the public sector, but Greek television is instead reporting the budget cuts will come from further cuts to pensions and welfare benefits, stoking public anger.

A range of leaders including IMF head Christine Lagarde have expressed a willingness to give Greece more time to lower deficit targets provided the country continues to demonstrate its reform credentials. The country’s finance minister, Yannis Stournaras, has said international lenders are likely to reach a final decision on revising the timeframe in the second half of October.

Barclays analysts said in a client note a postponement of interest payments coupled with an intensification of monitoring by the troika could provide a way for Greece’s bailout terms to be eased without creditors being seen to give in too much. The risk of a Greek exit from the euro remained, although this was not the most likely scenario, they said.